Friday, March 14, 2014

Black
Powder Discovered: A traveler at Grand Rapids (GRR) had a storage tube
in his carry-on bag containing four cubes each with 100 grains of black powder.
He stated that he uses the black powder for muzzle loading and forgot to remove
it from his bag. This is a good example of why it’s always important to double
check your bags prior to traveling.

Loaded Gun Discovered at (MIA)

35Firearms Discovered This Week
– Of the 35 firearms, 29 were loaded and 11 had rounds
chambered. See a complete list and more photos at the bottom of this post. (Updated on 3/20/14 to remove three duplicates)

Inert
Ordnance and Grenades etc.
- We continue to find inert hand grenades and other weaponry on a weekly basis.
Please keep in mind that if an item looks like a realistic bomb, grenade, mine,
etc., it is prohibited. When these items are found at a checkpoint or in
checked baggage, they can cause significant delays in checkpoint screening.
While they may be novelty items, you cannot bring them on a plane. Read
here on why inert items cause problems.

Five
inert/replica grenades were discovered in carry-on bags this week. Two were
discovered at Wichita (ICT), and the remainder were discovered at Las Vegas
(LAS), San Diego (SAN) and San Antonio (SAT).

Grenades Discovered at (L-R) SAT, SAN, LAS, ICT

Artfully
Concealed Prohibited Items –
It’s important to examine your bags prior to traveling to ensure no prohibited
items are inside. If a prohibited item is discovered in your bag or on your
body, you could be cited and quite possibly arrested by local law enforcement.
Here are a few examples from this week where prohibited items were found by our
officers in strange places.

A
concealed double edge knife inside a comb was discovered at San Francisco
(SFO).

Five
credit card knives were discovered this week. Two were discovered at Grand
Forks (GFK), and the remainder were discovered at Charleston (CHS), Kansas City
(MCI), and Rapid City (RAP).

Stun
Guns – 13
stun guns were discovered this week in carry-on bags around the nation. Two
were discovered at Birmingham (BHM), two more at Las Vegas (LAS), and the
remainder were discovered at Albuquerque (ABQ), Anchorage (ANC), Columbus
(CMH), Denver (DEN), Fargo (FAR), Helena (HLN), Oklahoma City (OKC), San
Francisco (SFO), and San Jose (SJC).

Ammunition Discovered at (BNA)

Ammunition – When packed
properly, ammunition can be transported in your checked luggage, but it is
never permissible to pack ammo in your carry-on bag.

Firearms
Discovered This Week in Carry-On Bags

Guns Discovered at (T-B / L-R) CPR, MSY, TPA

Guns Discovered at (L-R / T-B) SAT, DAL, CHA, FLL, CLT

*In
order to provide a timely weekly update, this data is compiled from a
preliminary report. The year-end numbers will vary slightly from what is
reported in the weekly updates. However, any monthly, midyear, or end-of-year
numbers TSA provides on this blog or elsewhere will be actual numbers and not
estimates.

Unfortunately
these sorts of occurrences are all too frequent which is why we talk about
these finds. Sure, it’s great to share the things that our officers are
finding, but at the same time, each time we find a dangerous item, the
throughput is slowed down and a passenger that likely had no ill intent ends up
with a citation or in some cases is even arrested. The passenger can face a
penalty as high as $7,500.00. This is a friendly reminder to please
leave these items at home. Just because we find a prohibited item on an
individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law
enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had
these items.